UNESCO has published this report on education in Africa. The good news: “Africans today are better educated than ever before and they are reshaping the global workforce, with the working-age population expected to reach 600 million by 2030.”
But, “Although 75 million more African children are enrolled in school today compared to 2015, the number of out-of-school children has increased by 13.2 million to over 100 million during the same period. Even more alarming is the lack of improvement in the quality of education, whether measured in terms of basic infrastructure or learning outcomes. The average school student in Africa today is about as likely to have a qualified teacher and have access to basic facilities such as water and electricity as their peers from 10 years ago.” There is a lack of investment in education by African governments, inequalities are not tackled. “Location and level of wealth are the most significant factors driving inequitable access. Children and young people in rural and marginalized communities continue to be disproportionately affected by educational inequalities. In some countries, secondary school completion rates among rural youth are up to 20 percentage points lower than those of their urban peers.”